Study visit: LUTP

From the 9th till the 16th of June, the first Leaders in Urban Transport Planning study visit to the Netherlands took place and the Dutch Cycling Embassy had the pleasure to provide support during the site visits of the visit, in close collaboration and with support from the World Bank, Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management as well as Dutch Enterprise Agency. The delegation consisted of representatives from Colombia, Peru, Ethiopia, China and Mongolia.  

The first site visit took place in The Hague, with a focus on the past, present and future of The Hague’s mobility transition. After an introduction by Shelley Bontje, project manager at Dutch Cycling Embassy which contextualized the historical context of how mobility habits, culture and infrastructure changed throughout the last decade, the delegation went on a cycling or walking tour in the Hague under the supervision of experts from Arup (Paula Godoy and Laurens Tait) and Goudappel (Alina Prey and Alejandro Montes). Throughout the tour, the delegation experienced first-hand The Hague’s mobility transition and were enriched by content related story telling on several locations, including before and after pictures. At the end of the site visit, a world of closure and  Q&A was provided by Arjen Kapteijns, Alderman Energy Transition, Mobility and Raw Materials of the City of The Hague.  

The second site visit took place in Amsterdam. To experience integrated mobility the group travelled with public transport from the Hague to Amsterdam. Anne Hoving, Policy Advisor Cycling & Road Safety, City of Amsterdam welcomed the group in their council chamber at city hall. Thereafter, a part of the delegation joined Kees van Ommeren and his colleagues of Decisio for an informative walking tour and visit at Decisio’s office. The knowledge exchange focus of this group included: public-private and public-public partnership, the why and how, financial and societal benefits of the partnerships, illustrated by examples of bike sharing, cycling infrastructure and mobility management. The other half of the delegation went for a cycling tour led by Sjors van Duren (RoyalHaskoningDHV), and explored the way Amsterdam has designed an inclusive city for cyclists, pedestrians, public transport and private vehicles with a focus on signalised junctions and street design. The site visit concluded in the heart of Amsterdam with a networking dinner generously supported by the Dutch Enterprise Agency.  

The third and final site visit went to Rotterdam. Where the delegation was welcomed at Arcadis office and José Besslink (City of Rotterdam) provided a welcoming presentation to the city. Thereafter, the group split up in three. One walking group, led by the City of Rotterdam’s José Besslink, Merijn Rijnsburger, and Adrienne Acoily, focused on the Inner-City Plan (City Lounge) which includes a variety of small and large-scale public space and mobility projects which are implemented in collaboration with local stakeholders. This later evolved in the Rotterdam Mobility Approach, with i.e. Rotterdam Bicycle and Rotterdam Walks programs. Recently, Rotterdam has launched its Traffic Circulation Plan, the group even visited a public consultation site which has been set up after the recent launch of the Traffic Circulation Plan.
The second group, led by Marco Mulder of Arcadis, went by foot and public transport from the heart of Rotterdam to its suburbs to experience intermodal integration of active mobility and public transport within the Metropolitan Region of Rotterdam and The Hague. The group visited a variety of public transport hubs.
The third group, led by Teije Gorris of GO-bililty, went on an urban safari by (bi)cycle! The urban safari focused on the human dimension within traffic as the primary basis for road safety. Throughout the cycling tour the following question was raise and discussed: Street design and technologies support safe traffic systems but how to incorporate active travel and cope with all new forms of e-mobility including Light Electric Vehicles.

Once again, a warm thank you for all those who supported in making the first LUTP visit to the Netherlands happen, including the fantastic input and insights gained from the delegation as well as DCE’s experts.